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Runway work at Newark Liberty Int'l Airport will add to air traffic above some communities

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Newark Liberty International Airport's 4L-22R runway, center, which runs parallel to the New Jersey Turnpike, right, will close for two months starting Tuesday for an overhaul.
(John Moore/Getty Images)

NEWARK — A key portion of Newark Liberty International Airport is getting a makeover.

For two months starting Tuesday, contractors will overhaul one of the airport’s major north-south runways.

Because the work will force the closing of Runway 4L-22R, an east-west runway will see more landings and take-offs and resulting flight patterns will bring more planes over Jersey City, Bayonne and Staten Island, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said in a release.

The agency, however, said airlines flying into and out of Newark Liberty have agreed to reduce scheduled flights by 15 percent, which will somewhat reduce the impact on those communities.

“We regret the inconvenience to residents who typically see a lower volume of planes over their homes, but this work is essential to the safety of fliers and the efficiency of aircraft operations at Newark Liberty International Airport,” Thomas Bosco, the Port Authority’s aviation director, said in the release. “The high-speed taxiways enable aircraft landing at the airport to exit the runway faster, allowing more efficient use of the airfield to help reduce delays and congestion.”

The $97.3 million project, which will also add high-speed taxiways and electrical overhauls, will create more than 500 jobs and about $152 million in economic activity, the Port Authority said.

According to the Authority, the agency’s noise-complaint-hotline system, at (800) 225-1071, has been made easier for people to lodge specific complaints.

The runway is scheduled to reopen June 1. Fewer landings and takeoffs than usual will take place for about two weeks to allow contractors to finish punch-list items, the authority said. It will also close for an additional 10-day period starting Sept. 20.